Complications of Body Contouring Surgery in Postbariatric Patients: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
Level 3 - non-randomized controlled study
Systematic review and meta-analysis of observational cohort studies
PubMed 34018015 · doi:10.1007/s00266-021-02315-2
What was done
Authors conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis searching PubMed and Cochrane databases up to September 2020. Studies were included if they evaluated more than 35 postbariatric patients undergoing body contouring surgery and reported postoperative complication types and rates. Meta-analyses estimated overall complication rates and examined the effects of BMI and resected tissue weight on complication risk.
What was found
Twenty-five studies were included from 561 screened articles. The overall weighted complication rate across all studies was 31.5%, with seroma being the most frequent complication across all body regions (weighted rate 12.7% to 13.9%). A preoperative BMI ≥ 30 kg/m² was associated with a 37% increased risk of complications compared to BMI < 30 kg/m². Low mean weight of resected tissue was also associated with fewer complications.
Why it matters
This meta-analysis provides benchmark complication rates for postbariatric body contouring and highlights preoperative obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m²) and larger resection weights as key risk factors for adverse surgical outcomes.
Limits
The abstract does not provide the total participant sample size across the 25 studies, confidence intervals, p-values, or formal measures of between-study heterogeneity. Specific numerical effect sizes for resected tissue weight were not reported in the abstract.
Cited by
- supports Patients who are significantly overweight have a higher risk of surgical healing complications, including abscesses, wound necrosis, and infection.